Nutrition & Training · Protein & intake

Tracking intake honestly when appetite is absent

Nutrition & Training › Protein & intake constipation fatigue micronutrients lean mass loss

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Solved by k.bettencourt in post #10

Answering the question post #8 raises rather than the one it answers. Renal considerations around higher protein intake apply to people with existing renal impairment and are frequently generalised beyond that population. That is all I can say without guessing.

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sterile_fileTL3Regular13 Apr 2026#1

On the subject in the title: Tracking intake honestly when appetite is absent Working notes rather than a conclusion.

I have spent a fortnight trying to pin tracking intake down and I want to set out where I have got to, because I suspect the honest answer is duller than the thread this will produce.

What I have: a consistent observation across a small number of cases, collected the same way each time. What I do not have: any controlled comparison, or any reason to think my cases are representative.

The specific question is whether the pattern survives once the obvious confounder is removed. I cannot remove it with what I have.

0 likes 3mo

z.laurentTL216 Apr 2026#2

No notes. Posting so the count is not one.

2 likes 3mo

k.kimaniTL218 Apr 2026#3

z.laurent, post #2: No notes. Posting so the count is not one. Go to post

The opening post is right about the mechanism and I think understates the practical bit.

Liquid sources are tolerated better than solid ones by many people here, and that is a practical observation rather than a nutritional principle.

Flagging that the sources on this are thinner than the confidence in the thread suggests.

9 likes in reply to #2 3mo

isotonic_reviewTL1Member19 Apr 2026#4

Coming back to the opening post, because the follow-up matters more than the original answer.

The practical problem is that appetite suppression makes hitting a target genuinely hard, and "eat more protein" ignores the actual constraint.

Genuinely open to being wrong about this one.

21 likes 3mo

b.aaltoTL221 Apr 2026#5

Adding the measurement that post #3 says would settle it.

Micronutrition alongside protein: eating protein foods that are also good sources of micronutrients (iron, B vitamins, zinc) solves two problems at once.

That distinction has done more work for me than anything else in this category.

0 likes 3mo

t.pereiraTL222 Apr 2026#6

k.kimani, post #3: The opening post is right about the mechanism and I think understates the practical bit. Liquid sources are tolerated better than solid ones by many people here, and that is a practical observation rather than a nutritional principle. Flagging that the sources on this are thinner than the confidence in the thread suggests. Go to post

My understanding of tracking intake is a few years old and may have been superseded. If it has been, I would genuinely like to know rather than keep repeating it.

5 likes in reply to #3 3mo

h.eriksenTL224 Apr 2026#7

Where intake has fallen a long way, protein is usually the first thing to fall because it is the least appealing macronutrient when appetite is reduced.

14 likes 3mo

e.lehtinenTL225 Apr 2026#8

I had written a reply contradicting post #4 and deleted it. Here is what survived.

Self-reported intake is optimistic by a consistent margin in the published comparisons, which is worth applying to your own numbers.

28 likes 3mo

s.radichTL226 Apr 2026#9

sterile_file, post #1: On the subject in the title: Tracking intake honestly when appetite is absent Working notes rather than a conclusion. I have spent a fortnight trying to pin tracking intake down and I want to set out where I have got to, because I suspect the honest answer is duller than the thread this will produce. What I have: a consistent… Go to post

Following this. I have the same question and no better information than the first post.

2 likes in reply to #1 3mo

k.bettencourtTL2Member Solution28 Apr 2026#10

Answering the question post #8 raises rather than the one it answers.

Renal considerations around higher protein intake apply to people with existing renal impairment and are frequently generalised beyond that population.

That is all I can say without guessing.

9 likes in reply to #3 3mo

a.kwiatkowskiTL2Member29 Apr 2026#11

Post #7 put the caveat in the right place and I want to underline it.

Nobody has said the unglamorous part of tracking intake yet, so: most of the variation is explained by things that are boring to write about and easy to check.

0 likes 3mo

n.kaufmannTL230 Apr 2026#12

a.kwiatkowski, post #11: Post #7 put the caveat in the right place and I want to underline it. Nobody has said the unglamorous part of tracking intake yet, so: most of the variation is explained by things that are boring to write about and easy to check. Go to post

Building on post #11 rather than restating it.

Answering the tracking intake question as asked, then the question I think is meant. As asked: yes, with the qualification below. As meant: it depends on how the first measurement was taken.

0 likes in reply to #11 3mo

NardoneTL2Member1 May 2026#13

e.lehtinen, post #8: I had written a reply contradicting post #4 and deleted it. Here is what survived. Self-reported intake is optimistic by a consistent margin in the published comparisons, which is worth applying to your own numbers. Go to post

Fibre and fluid tend to fall alongside protein when intake drops, and the constipation reported here follows from that as much as from the mechanism.

12 likes in reply to #8 3mo

t.vargaTL23 May 2026 · edited#14

Micronutrient adequacy becomes a real question at very low total intake and is much less discussed than protein.

Reading it back, the second half matters more than the first.

4 likes 3mo

crossover_entryTL3Regular4 May 2026#15

Post #11 and I disagree about the size of the effect, not about the direction.

The question underneath tracking intake is usually "how would I tell?" rather than "what is true?", and that one has a method attached to it.

Write down what you would expect to see under each hypothesis before you collect anything. If they predict the same observation, collecting it will not help.

0 likes 3mo

l.vermeulenTL25 May 2026#16

Protein supplements: whey, casein, and plant-based protein powders can help hit targets when whole-food intake is limited by appetite. Protein quality (all essential amino acids) matters more than form.

25 likes 3mo

TamburelloTL26 May 2026#17

Collapsed as off-topic by two members at trust level 3 or above

Worth separating tracking intake as a question about the compound from tracking intake as a question about the documentation. They get answered by different people and only one of them is answerable here.

l.lundgrenTL27 May 2026#18

Adding a note of thanks rather than an opinion. I did not know most of that.

1 like 3mo

o.abrahamsenTL3Regular8 May 2026 · edited#19

l.lundgren, post #18: Adding a note of thanks rather than an opinion. I did not know most of that. Go to post

Density matters more than quantity when total intake is limited. The same protein in a smaller volume is the whole game.

I would not lead a decision with this, but I would not ignore it either.

3 likes in reply to #18 3mo

m.nwosuTL29 May 2026#20

crossover_entry, post #15: Post #11 and I disagree about the size of the effect, not about the direction. The question underneath tracking intake is usually "how would I tell?" rather than "what is true?", and that one has a method attached to it. Write down what you would expect to see under each hypothesis before you collect anything. If they predict the same… Go to post

Distribution across the day appears to matter less than total for most outcomes, and it matters practically because a single large meal is harder when appetite is reduced.

Adding it in case it saves somebody the afternoon it cost me.

0 likes in reply to #15 3mo

t.dumitruTL210 May 2026 · edited#21

Picking up post #20: that is the part I would want checked first.

My position on tracking intake is current rather than settled. I have revised it once already and I expect to again, so treat it accordingly.

3 likes 3mo

endo_fellow_rkTL3Endocrinology fellow11 May 2026#22

On post #19 — agreed on the reasoning, with one qualification.

Where somebody reports losing strength, intake and training stimulus are the first two things to look at rather than the compound.

10 likes 3mo

j.vogelTL212 May 2026#23

Tracking intake for a week rather than permanently is usually enough to find out whether there is a problem. Permanent tracking has its own costs.

It is one reading of the data and not the only reasonable one.

23 likes 3mo

TL4_HalvorsenTL4Leader · Journal club13 May 2026#24

Tamburello, post #17: Worth separating tracking intake as a question about the compound from tracking intake as a question about the documentation. They get answered by different people and only one of them is answerable here. Go to post

Meeting protein targets on suppressed appetite: this is where the practical difficulty lies. Eating more protein when appetite is suppressed is genuinely hard. Front-loading the day, prioritising density over volume, and accepting this is a problem worth solving all help.

Small point, but it is the one that usually catches people.

0 likes in reply to #17 3mo

h.lindqvistTL214 May 2026#25

j.vogel, post #23: Tracking intake for a week rather than permanently is usually enough to find out whether there is a problem. Permanent tracking has its own costs. It is one reading of the data and not the only reasonable one. Go to post

Fibre: adequate fibre intake supports fullness and gut motility, both of which matter during the gastrointestinal effects of these compounds. High fibre on top of appetite suppression requires attention to hydration and gradual introduction.

It is worth stating the boring hypothesis before the interesting one.

6 likes in reply to #23 2mo

appeals_deskTL3Regular15 May 2026#26

Worth separating two things that post #22 runs together.

Eating anything at all: on substantial appetite suppression, eating enough total calories to maintain lean mass is the priority. Protein comes second to total intake.

Not disagreeing with anyone above, just adding the bit I keep having to look up.

15 likes 2mo

s.adebayoTL216 May 2026#27

Where the tracking intake discussion usually stalls is that nobody wants to say "I do not know" and everyone is willing to say "it varies". Those are the same sentence with different clothes on.

31 likes 2mo

weekly_pinTL2Regular17 May 2026#28

If you are new and reading this thread for the answer to tracking intake: the answer is conditional, the conditions are in the third reply, and the rest of the thread is worth skipping.

0 likes in reply to #17 2mo

e.lokkenTL218 May 2026#29

10 likes 2mo

c.rasmussenTL219 May 2026#30

Collapsed as off-topic by two members at trust level 3 or above

Reporting rather than recommending, on tracking intake. What happened is above. Whether it should have is a different question and not one I am qualified to answer.

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